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[275]
Moses having now seen and heard these wonders that assured him of
the truth of these promises of God, had no room left him to disbelieve
them: he entreated him to grant him that power when he should be in Egypt;
and besought him to vouchsafe him the knowledge of his own name; and since
he had heard and seen him, that he would also tell him his name, that when
he offered sacrifice he might invoke him by such his name in his oblations.
Whereupon God declared to him his holy name, which had never been discovered
to men before; concerning which it is not lawful for me to say any more
1 Now
these signs accompanied Moses, not then only, but always when he prayed
for them: of all which signs he attributed the firmest assent to the fire
in the bush; and believing that God would be a gracious supporter to him,
he hoped he should be able to deliver his own nation, and bring calamities
on the Egyptians.

1 This superstitious fear of discovering the name with four letters, which
of late we have been used falsely to pronounce Jehovah, but seems to have
been originally pronounced Jahoh, or Jao, is never, I think, heard of till
this passage of Josephus; and this superstition, in not pronouncing that
name, has continued among the Rabbinical Jews to this day (though whether
the Samaritans and Caraites observed it so early, does not appear). Josephus
also durst not set down the very words of the ten commandments, as we shall
see hereafter, Antiq. B. III. ch. 5. sect. 4, which superstitious silence
I think has yet not been continued even by the Rabbins. It is, however,
no doubt but both these cautious concealments were taught Josephus by the
Pharisees, a body of men at once very wicked and very superstitious.

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